Friday, November 18, 2011

"Comtel Air passengers on a Tuesday flight from to Birmingham, England, from the Indian city of Amritsar were hit up for 130 pounds -- about $200 each -- during a layover in Vienna. They were allowed off the aircraft to take the money from teller machines, a process that took about seven hours. There were varying accounts of what the money was to pay for, ranging from fuel to fees.

Lal Dadrah, a freelance photographer who captured the scene, called it "a complete, utter sham."....

"I could not believe what I was witnessing," Dadrah told British network ITN. "It was as if we'd been held hostage against our wills, with the 24,000 pounds we all eventually had to pay being the ransom.""

Well, I guess we have more reasons to "fly by the balance sheet"...Wow!